SHS News

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So I've been down in the States for a few weeks now. What's new?

Since coming down to Allentown, PA, it's been a neverending stream of seeing old friends, linking up business opportunities, and work at King Studios. I've taken up the position of Media Manager for the studio, and started catching up with a stream of old friends that seems endless.

I met with my old friend Mark Rex a few days before the holidays. Since I last saw him he's raised two sons and gone through a ton of trials and tribulations, and now we might start working together on the SHS Merch store. His wild ideas and counter-culture attitude aligns perfectly with my in-your-face creative style, and we've already started brainstorming ideas for the future. Mostly it was great to just hug my old friend and see that he's alive and well, strengthened by the many challenges he's overcome in the years since I've seen him last.

Another friend helping with the SHS Merch site is Christopher Love from Oblivion Threads. We're exploring a partnership together, either adding a line of his merchandise on my site or somehow combining our businesses. We'll have to see how we can mesh our ideas and goals yet, but know we're going to be doing some cool stuff together soon.

I also met with another old friend Seth Nagy, who's now an experienced SEO professional. With his advice and assistance, I've started the process of bringing my business up to snuff on google, verifying my trustworthiness, and getting some extra traction online. It was great to hang out over a few beers, catch up on each other's professional lives, then marvel at how far video games have come by playing some Xbox One. He and I have some partnership ideas, but we'll release some details on that soon.

One of the ideas I'm most excited about is working with one of my best friends Bjorn Straker. A marine and incredibly dedicated and kindhearted friend, Bjorn and I have known each other since the first day of kindergarten. Growing up in school together has intertwined our lives irrevocably, and we've long since gotten used to the idea. With his knowledge of cars, firearms, and all kinds of other cool stuff, we're going to be working on a YouTube channel together. Expect footage of things going fast, spitting fire, exploding, breaking, stabbing, cutting, and shooting. Not quite sure how we'll make that happen as of yet, but rest assured it's going to be awesome.

Another friend interested in working on a YouTube channel is Brandon Stoltz, with whom I used to play in a high school metal band. One of my first experiences as a drummer, we spent hours hunched over Guitar Pro 5 tabbing out an entire EP in a few weekends. Since then we've been friends over Facebook, constantly sharing snippets of our musical careers with each other over the years. He's starting a solo music channel, and I'm at least going to be offering some advice on how best to capture his ideas... ideally I'll be helping film and produce it with him! He's got some crazy guitar skills, so definitely stay tuned for that.

Finally, working with Justin and Ryan has been rewarding beyond belief. Not only do they have a near-constant revolving door of extremely talented bands and musicians coming through the door, but they've encouraged me to team up with them and have done everything they can to make it possible for me to spend my days working with them. I'll be clearing out a room in their newly purchased production house, where they're undergoing renovations and adding improvements on the daily. With two fully-functioning studios complete with drum, vocal, and live rooms, we can collectively produce top-quality media of all kinds.

When bands come into the studio, I'm usually already there with all of my camera gear, which makes it an easy choice for them to hire me to document their studio time. By creating media to preemp their album, EP, or song releases, they can maximize the effectiveness of their posts on social media, greatly increasing the success of their media. Since these bands are already where I'm working, I've been offering a 20% off discount to every group/artist that comes through on their media, making it worth everyone's while without breaking the bank.

Since I've taken over media for King Studios, there's going to a lot of new pages, websites, and merch coming out for them. I'll be posting a lot more from their page, creating media for their social media accounts, and trying to drive more traffic to their door. In return they've given me a space to work out of, a support network for my work, and access to a steady stream of work. Partnerships can be mutually beneficial when everyone knows their value, and the value of those around them!

That being said, stay tuned for tons of interesting new projects, collaborations, and posts from all the parties mentioned above. There's more beyond that, but I can't share details yet!

Thanks for reading,

Stay

Date

December 11 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

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Canada has been beautiful, challenging, and a one-of-a-kind learning experience. Now to take my skills down south of the border!

I grew up in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania. Ever since leaving the United States to pursue a degree in Ontario, I've been wondering when I'll move back south. For a long time I was working and playing in bands, had some long term relationships, and generally wanted to stay in the Great White North.

After a series of major setbacks amidst many small successes, I decided it was time to return home and finish the last year of my degree. Also, with a much denser population, working in the States might be a step in the right direction business-wise!

Even after just a few days, the schedule is starting to fill up, and it's feeling like the right move. With my vehicle, I'll be able to travel far and wide across the states, following wherever the road takes me.

Also, having a US bank account is going to allow me to change how I charge for services, as well as how my merchandise store charges for items. I'll be updating SHS Merch soon, that way US customers can get merch without having to pay an exchange rate fee. If I can find a better method to manufacture merch in Canada, I will open another site just for Canadian customers. I don't want to forget about my Canadian customers, but it's better to make my products viable for one customer base instead of overpriced for both!

As for my Canadian clients, I'm only about five hours away from the border, and willing to travel for work. I'll be in the area every now and then, and will be sure to visit!

While I already miss the beauty of Canada, I couldn't be more excited for the future. Who knows what the coming months hold? It'll be an adventure for sure, and I'll be sharing each step along the way.

As always, thanks for reading!

Cheers,

Stay

Date

November 25 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

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Running a freelance media business is no cakewalk, so how can you increase productivity? Here's a few ideas on structuring your business and branding, and creating a solid daily and weekly schedule to help keep you on track. Give it a shot, tell us if it worked in the comments!

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I'm constantly trying to improve my skills, pick up more freelance work, and provide better quality media to clients. Even though I have a lot to offer by myself, that's not what really brings in the work.

At first I was under the impression that I needed to branch out to different styles of media production, as I would always get the question "Oh you're a photographer! Do you do *insert style of photography*?" Then it became a question of not being visible enough online, so I setup a website, Facebook page, and learned how to get a following on Instagram. Finally, I started to do some research into why I wasn't getting as much work as I had hoped, and found some answers.

First of all, it's not about generalizing; it's about specializing. As a photographer, it's hard for me to pick a favorite style since there are so many out there, and sometimes I just don't have access to the types of shoots I would prefer to be doing. So because I couldn't necessarily specify, I decided to have separate branches that could do that for me. In addition to my band and model work with Stay Heavy Studios, I'm building a site for wedding & engagement media, and another for real estate and product imagery.

Next, don't try to carry the entire weight of your business on your shoulders. I've realized that working with others is a great way of spreading out the workload. Don't be afraid to second shoot for others, pick up editing work in your downtime, and shoot stock images for online media outlets. Even better would be to work with your own distributor, who can cover posting images online, sending them to various outlets and magazines, and make your business more visible online. I've also come to realize the importance of someone who can handle the legal side of your business, as it's rare to find someone who is a master of both a creative craft and business law.

Using these avenues to free up time might sound expensive, but is it as expensive as not having enough time to actually produce? By increasing the time spend actually producing media and working gigs, you drastically improve your earning ability. By raising your earning ability that much you gain exponentially more experience, build a bigger online presence, and earn enough income to actually pay for support staff. With the right people and a little faith, it's possible to bridge the gap from part-time freelancer to full-time producer.

That being said, I'm building myself a team. Right now I have to stay focused on the last year of my degree and improving my work at Shopify, but I'm keeping my eyes open for the right people to join my crew. If you're interested, drop me a line!

Thanks again for reading,

Stay

Date

July 20 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

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Been up to my neck in edits, finished video for Tip the Scales and Neck of the Woods, then working on a bunch for Vultures now. With 2TB of footage racked up, I feel like I could edit for a month without running out of cool footage.

The bands on the Death By Exposure tour kicked ass, nobody can argue that. After getting some more material finished for Vultures, it'll be on to editing some songs from bands we played with, posting drum cams, front cams, and full band edits for almost 30 bands. First order of business right now is Vultures drum cams, live footage, and our debut music video, which I've been slowly editing for the past month in the background, and can't wait to release!

In addition to band media, SHS is getting back into fashion photography, shooting tfp for some cool folks over the next few weeks to beef up the portfolio and get back in the game.

Branching back out into fashion, modelling, boudoir, and other edgy mediums of portraiture after taking a while off. Finally got to book some shoots with models out in Ontario, as well as line up some shoots for when I get back to BC. Also setting up some shoots to get a wedding and engagement portfolio going, setup a new website outside of SHS, and try to get into that realm of photography. Expect lots of pictures of beautiful people on the SHS page, crazy outfits and makeup, and some wild locations and concepts... there's lots on the docket for the near future!

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June 30 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

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This tour has been the most stressful and most rewarding thing I've ever done in my life. Between moments of utter desperation and sheer joy, I never thought I would learn so much and gain so much confidence in the goodwill and ability of people to come through no matter the circumstances.

As we traveled across Canada in our less-than-safe propane powered Chevy G20 band van, I'm sure we were all picturing the all the horrible ways we could die at any moment. To be fair, that probably made it easier for us to roll with the punches that came our way, as we ultimately did survive this journey despite all the dangers we faced along the way.

Our first challenge was faced when we were still in BC. We went to hit the road after our show at The Habitat in Kelowna, only to find our vehicle wouldn't start. At that point we were still looking at our barely working gas gauge to get an idea of how much propane we had (not realizing it wasn't functioning at all), and hoped it was simply a matter of filling our tank. An amazing and super supportive friend of ours (Quinn McGraw from Living Machines) got us a tow using his CAA membership, which got us to a mechanic's shop. I stayed in the van that night, watching over all our gear like a sleepy hawk, but a hawk nonetheless.

In the morning, we got another tow truck to bring us to a propane station, where we filled up. With hope in our hearts we turned the key, and nothing happened. Feeling defeated only four dates into our tour, we put up a sign asking for help and started messaging all our mechanically-inclined friends.

Several hours later, another friend from yet another band, Talon Wade of Psycherelics, stopped by to help us out. Not two seconds after sticking his head under the hood we hear "Well here's your problem right here... got some duct tape?" and all our jaws hit the floor simultaneously. He pulls out a length of tubing with a big chunk taken out of it, as it was apparently resting directly on one of the belts in the engine. I quickly grabbed my trusty roll of black duct tape, wrapped it as best we could, then replaced it and tried starting the engine. It shudders to life. We all exchange hugs and one or two professions of eternal love for Talon, who wipes his hands and takes off like it was just another day in the life.

This event showed us just how little about our vehicle we knew, and made it apparent that we quickly had to get familiar with maintaining it ourselves.

From that day forward we were obsessively checking our propane levels on the proper gauge (at the back of the vehicle, underneath the tank), checking our belts and hoses, and triple checking transmission fluid, brake fluid, and oil levels. A few shows and a few thousand kilometers went by, and we felt like we were making good time. We had a hiccup in Regina as we were loading into Cloud 9, but things seemed to fix themselves by that evening.

Then we passed through Winnipeg. Immediately after making it out of the city limits, it felt like our gears slipped, the engine started winding out, and we couldn't maintain speed. We pulled off the highway onto a small side road and attempted the fixes we were told to try earlier, as a the symptoms were similar to what had happened in Regina. This time we couldn't get it going again, and based on what all our sources were telling us, it sounded like our transmission was dead.

A chill of death passed over all of us, as we knew that was an end-of-the-road type problem. We didn't have the money or the time to fix something like that, so we were all less than optimistic about the possible outcomes, and weighing our options carefully. We were told there was a transmission specialists' shop in the area, so we might as well try to limp there on the one gear we had.

Alex hopped into the drivers seat and took us slowly down the highway, tractor-trailers whirring by at 100kph, while we struggled to maintain a measley 20kph. After a half hour of dragging our van's corpse through town, we arrived at Trans Tech and set up camp in their parking lot. We all discussed our plan for tomorrow, then split up to clear our heads and get food nearby, as there was luckily a 24hr 7/11 a half hour walk away. I made sure to get Oreos and milk, the ultimate comfort food, and pulled out a half bottle of tequila when we got back to camp, all in an attempt to brighten our spirits. We were hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst.

I think I speak for everyone when I say that the next day was the single most extreme emotional roller coaster we've ever experienced.

We woke up right as Trans-Tech opened and rushed to speak to a mechanic. We explained our dire situation, how we were stranded, what was wrong, and what we were doing so far from home. Something inside them clicked, and they immediately switched gears to help us with an emergency repair, which by itself blew us away. It's tough to get someone to drop a paying job in lieu of one where we might not be able to pay, much less one where the possible cost is so high, but they jumped to work like it was their lives on the line.

We spoke to the receptionist, June, who got us immediately in touch with Jason and Frank, both of whom got right on top of things. They let us know what would need to be done before they can get an exact quote, as well as a ballpark for what it would cost to do such a hefty emergency job. While Frank ripped out our dead transmission, June kept me informed while I waited in the lobby. Jason set up the rest of the band with a complimentary replacement van so they could go get breakfast across town. Just before they hit the road, we brought up some ideas for how to pay for the repairs, with the idea of a Go Fund Me being thrown in as an afterthought. While on the road, Alex and Graham setup the campaign, expecting maybe $40 to help with repairs.

Frank and Jason kept working on the van, letting me know that the transmission was toast, but they happened to have one for a 4x4 that they could rebuild for us. It was a lot of work, but they said they could possibly have us on the road that evening. The level of speed an accuracy at which these guys worked was astonishing, and I couldn't wait to tell the band once they returned. I continued to sit and wait, editing a homework assignment on my laptop in the corner of the lobby and trying not to panic over how we would pay.

Then, Alex comes skipping through the front door. He leans in and whispers, "We're at $400 already, people are sharing the campaign like crazy" and we both nearly burst into tears, laughing and hugging each other profusely. I told them about the estimated time and cost of repairs, and we all put our heads together for additional solutions as I rushed to submit my homework assignment on time.

Over the next two or three hours, Alex kept coming back and giving me updates on the Go Fund Me campaign. "Someone just donated another $75, bringing us up to a grand!" he said as tears welled in both our eyes. As the hours passed, more and more positive updates came from Alex, and I did all I could to stop from breaking down while working on schoolwork. Then, Jason and Frank emerged again.

"We topped up all your fluids, checked your brakes, and replaced the transmission. You're all good to go." said Jason. We all rejoiced, partially from the great news that we'd be back on the road before 4pm, possibly giving us enough time to make it to our Toronto date in a few days, and partially because our Go Fund Me campain had just reached it's goal of $2000. Trans-Tech Industries saved our butts something fierce that day, as well as all of the people who donated to our campaign, and continued to try and email us money even after it had closed.

In the end, our campaign covered the entire cost of repairs, which Trans-Tech gave us a fantastic deal at a huge discount. The generosity of people willing to help strangers in dire circumstances hit me hard that day, as none of us were expecting to even get into the shop that day, much less drive away on our way to Ontario.

The rest of the tour was a massive high for us, which I'll share more about later. There are so many other lessons encountered along the way, but the biggest take-away by far was this: get reliable transportation if you're hitting the road on tour. The amount of stress we faced just worrying about the possibilities along the way was nearly unbearable by itself, which made facing real issues even harder. We managed to keep eachother safe and relatively positive, but this was a massive challenge despite the positive outcome. Be prepared for the worst. We did our best to be prepared, and it still wasn't enough. Only the generosity of friends and people who met us along the way saved us in the end. For that, we can't thank you enough.

Much love, and thanks for reading,

Stay

Date

May 03 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

Comments

As always, there's been a lot going on.

Just in terms of work with Vultures I've been slogging through over 250GB worth of tour footage, backing it up on dropbox and sharing it with Malcolm Strasdin, the merch guy and videographer for Fall City Fall, and getting started with some edits for us and the other awesome bands we met along the way. Malcolm also shot a bunch of footage for our sets, getting our camera off the tripod and making for some much more dynamic footage... thanks again dude!

I also updated the Stay Heavy Studios website to include a separate SHS Merch site, allowing me to separate the Shopify apps I had working on my services and my merchandise. Along with the new site updates, I added a bunch of sweet new shirts, tanks, dresses, leggings, skirts, and more, all on some stellar quality merch. I did have to remove and replace some in order to preemptively defend myself again DMCA claims, but I think the new stuff is even better. I'll be getting a few sample shipments soon, expect some real photos on IG, FB, and the site soon!

At the same time, I've been battling a viral sinus infection, which is making for some missed days at work and hard going when it comes to school and video editing. It's been slow getting back to working order, but sometimes you just have to take a few days to devote your energy to healing before you can really be effective in any way.

Luckily, I not only was just finishing a week off from Full Sail, but we just started using a new online platform. FSO 4.0 can be accessed from any laptop, smartphone, or tablet, which makes it super easy for me to go to school while in bed, on my way to the Subway down the road, or in the tour van.

Also, I'm on the final edit for a major commercial project. I'm not sure which aspects I'll be able to share afterward, but I've learned a lot along the way and hope to build on the connections I've made and the skills I've picked up in the future. Finishing this project will open up time for at least one more major booking, or a string of short-term gigs or photography bookings.

Finally, I'm looking to expand the SHS Film Reviews to include TV shows as well, as I watch an ungodly amount of TV as well, especially since I realized my Amazon Prime membership comes with Amazon Prime Video. While I do mean to get back on the Netflix bandwagon soon enough, I'm honestly really enjoying the myriad of original shows available on the platform, each one finding a way to stand out in its own right. In short, expect some TV entries in the SHS Film Reviews blog soon!

Cheers!

Stay

Date

April 27 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

Comments

There's a lot coming up.

Not only did me and the boys in Vultures just get back from five amazing days on the road with Fall City Fall, but we'll be heading all the way across Canada only a month after that. We're getting our van in tip-top shape, saving our pennies, and prepping for another awesome show here at the Prawn House. We'll be headlining on the Death By Exposure Tour, and hope to get our name out across Canada and build some real momentum.

Another thing I'm working on with the band is our first music video. We've chosen the track "Beyond the Trees" from our debut EP Malcontent, have written our storyboards, and have even started early production with the help of a select few friends. We don't want to give too much away just yet, but Kiseki Baier has been killing it shooting BTS for us so I guess we'll give you a teaser.

That being said, there's a lot of changes coming to SHS... which I know I say all the time, but it's true. I'm looking at options such as a studio location, as well as building a small traveling team that would operate much in the same way a touring band does. Besides that, I'm looking to release my first coherent line of apparel through my Shopify website, which will also be seeing a design update in the near future.

Speaking of updates to the website, I've altered my pricing a bit, added a Bookings page, removed the old Photo Wall, and even added a way to make deposits through LayBuy by PayPal. From now on, anyone will be able to purchase service bookings, then immediately request a time slot and share their ideas, while only having to pay a 25% deposit up front! Also, I've moved all the merchandise over to SHS Merch, which will also be connected with our Facebook page, Messenger, and Instagram! Be sure to take a look around, the quality of all the items is fantastic!

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So it begins...

Between starting my year-long thesis project at Full Sail, producing our first music video as Vultures, and finding a way to work and go to school while on tour for sixteen shows across Canada this summer, I'm going to be fried.

At the same time, I've never been so excited. I've been given creative control over video production, which really allows me to work within our means yet still produce a high quality and coherent product. The guys are trusting me, people are getting involved, and the pressure is on!

What to expect from SHS:

We'll be shooting BTS photos and videos of our work over the next few weekends producing our video, and I've got a bunch of changes I need to make to the website in terms of merchandise, booking functionality, and just distribution of materials in general. I've got a TON of new clothing designs on the way for 2017, as well as a revised list of services, and some long overdue updates to my example material.

On a more fun side-note, my school program is coming into its last year and I've been watching an absolute shitload of movies as I work on my thesis project. Since I already nerd-out pretty hardcore after every film end up babbling about it to the first person I see, I figure I might as well share my opinions with you. I don't plan to follow any specific theme, but I tend to get on genre or director kicks every now and then, but expect variety! I just posted the new blog, check it out here!

On the personal side of things:

I haven't been able to make it to physio since I'm saving my buns off for the production of our music video, two upcoming tours, and a possible move at the end of the summer, which is making the healing process move even slower. I'm working on some alternate methods to get some time there again, and adjusting my budget to try to accommodate everything.

Despite juggling those stressors, spring and warm weather is approaching and it's brightening my mood immensely. The constant rain and gray is giving way to sunny days and warmth, making it easier to sit outside to work, or just take a walk to get some fresh food at the local grocery store.

In addition, I'm finally passing my six-month probation at my job, as well as getting shifted into daytime hours! I'm still not going to announce the job, as I have that final six-month review meeting before I'm 100% sure they still want me around, but expect that in the next post for sure. Either way, the move from 4pm-midnight to 10am-6pm will make a huge difference, and allow me to actually do some socializing during the week!

Always changing, always adapting, always moving forward.

Out of all of this chaos and change, I'm sticking to one train of thought: the more work I do now, the easier things will be later. If I just slog through this period of madness, I don't expect to be done the hard work, but I expect to be better at dealing with it.

Expect lots of stuff in the next few months, this summer is going to be a doozy and I'll do my best to keep you updated.

Thanks again for reading,

Stay

Date

February 02 2017

Written By

Stefan Fulton

Comments

There have been a lot of big changes here, both good and bad. New merchandise, new prices on services, and some big projects put to rest. Frustrating injuries, mental health issues, and breakups. This year is all about learning to take the good with the bad, learning from life as we move through it.

So first, the good news;

I've finally gotten a small run of merchandise for product shoots! Not only is apparel comfortable and accurately-sized, but the full-colour designs are some of the most vibrant I've ever seen! As a band guy it makes me a bit uncomfortable wearing my own merchandise but honestly, I can't help but wear those wicked socks as often as I wash em.

There's a bunch more designed and ready to go, but I'll be ordering sample runs and doing shoots with them before releasing them as a complete run. Expect some interesting spacey designs on shirts, leggings, skirts, and much more in time for the Spring. Big thanks to Printful for servicing our designs, I'm sure everyone will appreciate the quality. Also, I've finally upgraded to a Sony FS5, which is a major step up from a crop-factor sensor!

Now for the hard stuff...

It's been a difficult season. First, I split up with my ex-fiancée and haven't had the easiest time with it. While it was a massive change in my life, it ultimately was for the best and has shown me some much-needed adjustments I've needed to make in myself for a long time.

Following that, I've had to deal with a bad bout of lateral epicondylitis, more commonly known as tennis elbow or computer elbow. It's put me in a position where I have to simply heal, which means no typing for school, no typing at work, no playing bass or drums, and no editing work. Needless to say, having to stop doing more or less everything I do, even if just for short time, has been brutal.

The mixture of these two events has left me in a bit of a weird place. I've been working hard mentally ordering my responsibilities for when I get back to work, attempting to find alternate ways of doing the most pressing work, and figuring out how to get back to just being myself again. All the while, I've been unable to get much physical activity in while healing, so it's been a lot of mental work without any real physical outlet for my stress.

This too shall pass.

While I've been facing a lot of difficulties lately, I'm still hopeful. I realize all of this is temporary, and just another challenge along my path. Life isn't really about achieving a state of permanent happiness, but about being about to meet and overcome the challenges that come our way in life. Once I'm done healing, it's going to be a straight shot to graduation, then going full time with Shopify and Stay Heavy Studios for the summer!

Again, thanks for reading and staying tuned. Be sure to check out our upcoming shows with Vultures on Facebook and at VulturesOfficial.com, I hope to see you there! Expect plenty of new content on the SHS Youtube and Instagram as well, lots of backlogged content to catch up on!